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Putting a phoenix borne from trauma to rest
An ode to our blog baby, KultScene
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5 Minute Focus: Elise Hu on Beauty & 'Flawless'
Former NPR Seoul bureau chief, Hu's upcoming book 'Flawless investigates K-beauty and our relationship with fashion, beauty
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Mini Note #1 - Parasocial reliance
“I wonder what it means for me to be relying on such young people for my joy and mental/emotional well-being away from my own stressful life?”
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Korea's ticketing model should be taken into consideration for the US live music market
Concert tickets should be affordable
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K-Popping in with some reads & watches
Life hit me hard lately, sorry I suck
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Remembering Moonbin
Yesterday, April 19, it was reported that Korean star 문빈, romanized as both Moonbin and Moon Bin, passed away. The singer-songwriter-actor-variety personality was 25. He had been active in the entertainment industry since childhood, and was part of boy band Astro, and the unit Moonbin & Sanha. His sister Moon
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What makes a "good" Coachella performance in 2023?
After a lot of takes about Blinkchella, I can't help but wonder about perceptions on pop performances
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SM Entertainment is in the endgame now
New management, new goals. What does this mean for the first K-pop company?
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Conversations about swastikas and K-pop give me migraines
A few weeks ago, in a very widely-covered story, TWICE’s Chaeyoung wore two very controversial shirts, one featuring a QAnon slogan, and one with Sid Vicious of the Sex Pistols wearing a Nazi Swastika. I didn’t write about it at the time for a variety of reasons, partially
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Notes on K-pop Interview: Fifty Fifty on dreams, reality, and hitting it big with Cupid
Last year, new girl group Fifty Fifty’s song Lovin’ Me was a fan favorite among many diehard music loving K-pop fans. It ended up becoming one of my favorite songs of 2022. But it wasn’t the only great musical moment on the new act’s first EP, and
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Are we living in a Kpopcore world?
Like obscenity, K-pop isn’t easily definable but you know it when you see it. It’s because of this that I think everyone should stop trying say where K-pop is an industry, genre, culture, or something else. Kpopcore, your time has come. For anyone not in the know, a
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The infinite pricelessness of free K-pop fan labor
AKA "What’s the dollar amount of free fan labor?"